Building Trust in Biologicals Through Certification
June 12, 2024 Ask anyone that follows agriculture to name a category that has been rapidly growing in recent years and the chances are good that “biologicals” will come to mind. Initially used in specialty crops as an alternative to traditional crop production products, biologicals have expanded their reach over the past few years to include myriad row crops such as cotton, soybeans, and corn. In fact, by the end of this decade, market watchers predict the entire biologicals category will top $33 billion in market value.
Keenly aware of these facts, numerous traditional crop protection companies have entered the biologicals space. Today, products that participate here are likely to come from Bayer, Syngenta, and FMC in addition to newer “start-ups” founded specifically to cater to this category.
Despite this rapid market growth, however, biological products still suffer from plenty of pessimism from potential users/distributors due to early agricultural entries “not performing as advertised.” And this “trust issue” remains a key hinderance to new products entering the biologicals field. Indeed, according to the 2024 Biologicals Survey conducted by CropLife® earlier this year, 41% listed trust issues as the major reason biological products are having a hard time finding market acceptance. And although the percentage of respondents listing trust as an issue for biologicals did improve from the 2023 survey results (where it was 54%), trust is still far and away the major concern when it comes to using these products in row crop fields.
To help biologicals establish “more trust” with potential customers, The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) officially announced that it was introducing the Certified Biostimulants Program in June 2023. This past April, AgroLiquid became the first company to achieve this certification for its C-Tech biostimulant. Speaking at a press conference highlighting this achievement, TFI President and CEO Corey Rosenbusch explained why the association had established this program in the first place – to build trust.
“Agronomists have hundreds of products come across their desks every day and they don’t have the bandwidth and resources to evaluate them all,” said Rosenbusch. “The Certified Biostimulant program was created to provide that standard because we want to get them into the hands of more growers, and we want both the ag retailers and growers to have confidence when choosing which product they use.”
At the event, Nick Bancroft, President/CEO for AgroLiquid, told attendees why PrimAgro C-Tech is an important entrant in the biologicals category. “C-Tech was launched nine years ago as a biostimulant for improving nutrient uptake,” said Bancroft. “The product is ideal for use in soil types that don’t retain moisture very well. It’s great to have this certification as proof of what C-Tech can do for customers.”
Since this first biological product was certified using the TFI program, a few others have followed – with more likely to come before the end of year. It’s good to see this promising category taking the steps needed to address some of its trust issues, one product at a time.
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